Hi all! Our prayer plant has been with us for about 2 months now. It had been so healthy, but within the last couple of weeks it's condition decline.

The symptoms:
*Bright yellow leaves that eventually dry out
*No longer closing at night

A bit about the plant:
*We have a west-facing studio apartment with lots of lot (as we have a sliding glass door)
*The maranta sits a few feet from the glass door, but off to the side - so it gets indirect light (though sometimes the corner it sits in is not always as bright as the rest of the room)
*It's planted in a ceramic pot (no drainage) but it has stones in the bottom
*It is given a little water every day to keep the soil moist
*Temps are between 65F (night time A/C) and 80F, but typically low 70's

What kind of soil is your PP in? You shouldnt be watering it every day,it also needs to be in a pot with a drainage hole, even though you have pebbles in the bottom of the pot, water still sits in the bottom and can get stagnant causing root rot. Other members will have more advice for you.

We bought it from a lady that sells houseplants at our local farmers market, and she put it in "houseplant soil" - beyond that I am unsure.

We did feel uncomfortable about not having drainage in the bottom as well, but the lady who sells us the plants says she uses these types of pots for many of her plants and never has problems. Though I suspect she has a greener thumb than we do!

Wait and see what others say, but my suggestion would be to maybe re-pot it even though your only supposed to transplant in late spring, you could still keep the same pot but use a cache pot with drainage holes inside the decorative pot, this way you could remove it to water and then put it back, hope that makes sense
Also, add your location or zone so we know where you are, that is a big help

So far, the yellowing of a few leaves is not a cause for concern. However, if it continues and the new growth does not emerge or is unhealthy, then you may have a serious problem.

Plants are slow to react to stressful conditions. Yours may not be reacting to the incorrect (as Christine has pointed out) potting that was done or the improper watering or perhaps not enough light. I suggest making a few adjustments and waiting to see if it stabilizes before doing anything drastic like repotting.

Trim off any discolored leaves as they will not recover. Remove any loose soil that is on the surface. Water it only when the top half-inch of soil feels dry. Give it just enough water so that it reaches that level of dryness again in a week. Give it the brightest possible light that is not direct sun rays falling on the leaves. Rotate it so one side does not get more light than the other.

Will Creed
Horticultural Help, NYC
www.HorticulturalHelp.com
Contact me directly at [email protected]
I now have a book available on indoor plant care

Stop watering every day. With most plants its hard to tell the difference between over and underwatering from a picture, but luckily prayer plant is one of the easy ones. That yellowing is overwatering. When you underwater the leaves die from the outside edges that will get crispy and brown by the time the leaf is this far gone.
Cut off the yellow leaves. Its gonna be a lot easier in a pot with drainage, but prayer plants are pretty tolerant if you think you can be vigilant about checking to water only when its dry. Depending on how dry it is in your house it could be 4-7 days, but def. Not every day. Also, see if you can move it into that direct sun, the colors look a little washed out. Give it more sun and you'll be rewarded with colors that really pop.